1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tow bar and hitch assembly for coupling together industrial vehicles, such as carts, in train-like fashion.
2. Description of Prior Art
Carts are used extensively in industry in the transporting of goods from one location to another. Such carts generally find wide use in warehousing operations where they are used to shift the location of stored goods from one place to another within the warehouse, or to load and unload goods from vehicles such as railroad freight cars and highway tractor trailers. Further, such carts generally find wide use in major manufacturing facilities where they are widely used to transport goods from a storage location to a work station, or between storage locations, or between work stations.
A typical type prior art cart is that which is structured to include a flat bed provided with either a three or four-wheel suspension system. The bed allows the goods to be stacked thereon, and the wheels allow the cart to be easily rolled or pushed from one location to another. Such a cart is often provided with walls which extend upwardly from the bed of the cart, the walls having doors for easy loading and unloading of the cart.
It is known to provide in combination with such carts, a coupling device for connecting a pair of carts. This enables a plurality of similar carts to be coupled together, and pulled in a train-like fashion by a motorized vehicle. Generally, the main structure of the coupling device is located at the head or front end of the cart, which is interconnected with suitable structure at the tail or rear end of a similar cart, thereby allowing a plurality of the carts to be interconnected in train-like fashion. The train of carts may then be pulled around a warehouse, or a manufacturing or retail facility, by a motorized vehicle such as a work truck especially designed for that purpose. This provides economy of capital equipment in that only one motorized vehicle is required to service a multiplicity of carts.
Prior art coupling devices for connecting one cart to another and to a vehicle are generally not retractable and accordingly, when the carts are not in use the coupling device projects outwardly from the front of the cart and creates a safety hazard. Thus, it has been found desirable to provide a coupling device that retracts completely back underneath the bed of the cart when not in use.
Coupling devices which solve this basic problem are known. However, such retractable coupling devices are complex in structure, thereby making their maintenance relatively difficult and their initial manufacture relatively expensive.